Blogging yet?

You can use social media to help you refine your message and grow your business. Your posts and tweets don't have to be "random" even though it can look like it. Learn how to blog on purpose and for profit!

Find a partner to help you in your journey!

If you could learn new exercises, techniques and strategies for planning your life, building a business, increasing your income and understanding your purpose, would it be worth the price of a meal?

10 Ultimate No B.S. #MonsterTips to Help You Sell More and Earn More Money Now!!

If you aren't earning the money you want to earn, it's only because there's something you don't know...yet!

Learn How to Use Pinterest for Business!

"Pinterest now drives more referral traffic than Google+, YouTube, and LinkedIn combined." Oh, yeah... here's mine! I have to admit. I think it's pretty cool so far!

The Social Media and Marketing Success LIVE Webinar is Coming!

YOU ASKED FOR IT AND NOW IT'S HERE!!! DON'T MISS THIS CHANCE TO PROPEL YOUR BUSINESS AND LIFE FORWARD!

Tuesday, April 24, 2012

Use This Little-Used Method to Increase Your Business Dramatically!

Want to increase your business for little to no out-of-pocket cost to you?


Drum roll, please...

Talk to people.  People still do business with people, and your business is still based mostly on trust. 



When I get on the phone and when I take meetings, I make money.  When I try to run my business from my laptop, I don't make as much money.  This means that I need to answer my phone, make meetings and return correspondence quickly.  So do you.  Plain and simple.  When I am not talking to people, I am getting losing ground financially. 


Even if you're HORRIBLE at closing sales, you can stack the odds in your favor by making more contacts.  If I am talking to people, I'm getting richer.  It's usually not more complicated than that. 


Please SUBSCRIBE (using the form to the right on this blog!) and also leave me your comments so I know how to serve you better!! If this was helpful, forward it to a friend. Talk to you soon! To your success!









Mark Anthony McCray helps people live on PURPOSE, achieve higher PERFORMANCE and experience true PROSPERITY. Be sure to subscribe to this blog so you don't miss a thing and forward this to a friend if you found it helpful. All material © Copyright, Mark Anthony McCray unless otherwise noted!

He can be reached in the following ways:
Mark@LiveBIGDieEmpty.com
Phone: 281-846-5720
Twitter: @LiveBIGDieEmpty
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/LiveBIGDieEmpty
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/markanthonymccray/
Google+: https://plus.google.com/u/0/103149858138414160703/posts
YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/markanthonymccray
Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/markmccray/

For more information on Mark as a speaker or presenter check out http://livebigdieempty.blogspot.com/p/about-mark_29.html


Monday, April 16, 2012

Learn How to Hear Silence

Most of the clients who put up an abnormally high amount of resistance to giving you information, providing financial records, paying for third party reports, signing your fee agreement, or otherwise putting money into their business deal should be passed over.

They probably know something about their situation – to their detriment – that they are not communicating. Whatever is causing them pause will probably kill their deal or make it extremely difficult to get done in the end.


I try to NEVER invest more into solving another person's problem than they're willing to invest themselves. A person who really wants your help with be a blabbermouth - telling you everything you want to know about their challenges and things you don't want to know.

Real pain speaks! If your prospect doesn't have enough pain to really, truly tell you where it hurts, it doesn't hurt bad enough. If they don't care, you shouldn't either. Silence tells me a lot!

Please SUBSCRIBE (using the form to the right on this blog!) and also leave me your comments so I know how to serve you better!! If this was helpful, forward it to a friend. Talk to you soon! To your success!









Mark Anthony McCray helps people live on PURPOSE, achieve higher PERFORMANCE and experience true PROSPERITY. Be sure to subscribe to this blog so you don't miss a thing and forward this to a friend if you found it helpful. All material © Copyright, Mark Anthony McCray unless otherwise noted!

He can be reached in the following ways:
Mark@LiveBIGDieEmpty.com
Phone: 281-846-5720
Twitter: @LiveBIGDieEmpty
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/LiveBIGDieEmpty
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/markanthonymccray/
Google+: https://plus.google.com/u/0/103149858138414160703/posts
YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/markanthonymccray
Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/markmccray/

For more information on Mark as a speaker or presenter check out http://livebigdieempty.blogspot.com/p/about-mark_29.html


All Money Isn't Good Money...Not All Clients Are Good Clients.


All of us, no matter the field of business, have experienced the regret of taking on business that doesn't seem worth it. It's frustrating, maddening, infuriating and head-scratching all rolled together. Here's what I've learned: never do business with anyone who makes your head hurt or your stomach hurt. If you have qualms, steer clear. It will be worth it because all money isn't good money and not every Client is a good Client.

There are a number of rationalizations we construct in our minds when we're sitting across from a Prospect with whom we suspect we shouldn't be doing business. Perhaps all of them boil down to doubting ourselves and our ability to bring in new business. At some level we figure the future isn't promised and we should take what's presented - no matter the risk of heartache and aggravation in the future.

Sometimes it's our own pride and arrogance that gets us. We believe, i.e., choose to convince ourselves, that our savvy can rescue a situation that isn't salvageable or redeem a Client who is irredeemable. We've walked into the lion's den without being eaten before, so why not again? Right?

What is the remedy? We have to be emotionally disciplined and courageous enough to say "no" when our gut is telling us to say "no" and it's as simple as that. There's no formula. There are no steps. We trust ourselves and, if you're a Believer, trust the Lord enough to back away and allow the good business to come to us.

As the Bible reminds us in Proverbs 10:22, the Lord's blessings don't come with sorrow. If you see trouble coming, be wise enough to walk away.

To your success!









Mark Anthony McCray helps people live on PURPOSE, achieve higher PERFORMANCE and experience true PROSPERITY.  Be sure to subscribe to this blog so you don't miss a thing and forward this to a friend if you found it helpful. All material © Copyright, Mark Anthony McCray unless otherwise noted!

He can be reached in the following ways:
Mark@LiveBIGDieEmpty.com
Phone: 281-846-5720
Twitter: @LiveBIGDieEmpty
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/LiveBIGDieEmpty
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/markanthonymccray/
Google+: https://plus.google.com/u/0/103149858138414160703/posts
YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/markanthonymccray
Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/markmccray/

For more information on Mark as a speaker or presenter check out http://livebigdieempty.blogspot.com/p/about-mark_29.html


Tuesday, April 3, 2012

THINKING ABOUT SELF-PUBLISHING?


Information from book publisher, Ken Whitman of SideKickPrinting.com, for those interested in some rough numbers on the self-publishing business. I get these questions quite often regarding what people should expect.

From Ken Whitman:

"I produce a lot of books for self-publishers. There seem to be three types.

Type 1: I print 100 books for them and they never come back.
Type 2: I print 100 books from them and they come back 2 to 4 times over six months.
Type 3: The ones that have a built in audience and I print 500 -1000 copies every two to three months.

Now for the fun part...

Type one is 80% of my business
Type two is 18% of my business
Type Three is 2% of my business

An average self-published Author would make:

Type 1 - $500 or less
Type 2 - $2000 to $4000 over the course of a year or so
Type 3 - $10 to $20,000 per year

Identify what should your investment be into a self-published book. Let's say between editing, cover design, marketing, etc. it could easily cost 2500 or more, you would have to fall into that Type 2 (18%) category just to break even..... "

[Mark's Note: It seems the best use of books for most self-publishers is to open the door to other opportunities such as speaking, consulting and other product sales.]

I hope this helps...

What do you think? Are you published yet? If you are, what are your experiences?

"DIY is for Weekends and Hobbies"


You can probably tell by the title that I'm not a huge fan of trying to do everything alone. Not anymore. Business and life are challenging enough already. I've learned to seek out every advantage I can find. There are some who do not agree. They consider themselves proud do-it-yourselfers. I guess?

As to the matter of whether and what people can do for themselves, that's an interesting topic for me. It gets into many issues that touch on what you do, as well. Could people do for themselves what you do for them? Of course they could. However, there is an efficiency and effectiveness to using a real estate professional that is hard to replicate for most people. Likewise with my business. There are people who choose not to compensate you for your services. Those who do are rewarded with outstanding service and results that far surpass what most could do on their own.

Same with me.

Of course most of the "I can do it myself" crowd haven't and aren't doing it themselves. That's part of the reason they're financial situation is in the condition it's in.

One more thought about the "I can do THAT myself!" mentality.

Sometimes it comes from people not wanting others to see their "stuff" up close. I can understand that and I have two responses that you might not like still.

1 - Every true professional I know in any field has seen "stuff" like yours and worse than yours. I see "stuff" and hear "stuff" all day, every day. I'm not phased by seeing stuff. Good doctors don't wince when they see blood and sores. They have to see them to know what you have and what to do about it.

2 - Staying with the doctor illustration: If it truly hurts bad enough, you'll get over yourself and show somebody where it hurts. When people are in pain, they'll get help. So, to other professionals on my page reading this... don't worry about those who won't show you their "stuff" because they aren't ready to be healed.

I'm done ranting now! LOL I promise... most people who meet me say I'm a nice guy! I just get perplexed and then see why it's always those who need the most help who are the most resistant. Then I see that the true key to success was written about by a wise man years ago... "there is safety in a multitude of counsel."

As to the matter of whether and what people can do for themselves, that's an interesting topic for me. It gets into many issues that touch on what you do, as well. Could people do for themselves what you do for them? Of course they could. Perhaps. If it's just about money, remember that cheap people never get ahead. Period. Say it however you want to, but the bottom line is sometimes you need to pay a professional to do what a professional does! The "I can do THAT myself" crowd never really accomplishes their goals.

Unless you are a professional serving yourself (a debatable strategy, too) you are not going to do nearly as good of a job as a professional will do for you. There's an old saying that goes "He who has himself as a lawyer, has a fool for a client." I now understand that 100% and will testify!!!

As you may know, I have two large areas of focus for my business: credit restoration and coaching.

In both areas, you run across the "I can do THAT myself!" crowd every single day. They are normally the people who need my help the most. But they're stuck looking at pennies when they need to be focused on dollars. Sadly, they're usually going to be in the same jacked up position one year, two years or forever. Why? Because they're using the same mind that created the problem to try to solve the problem.

On the other hand...

There are people (I'm looking at myself) who finally get to a point where you see the value in getting professional help and paying for professional help. I'm happier for it where I've done so. You can't always be looking to make it happen on your own. Not if it's really important to you.

People that spend time "trying" in the most critical areas of life usually get what they pay for... the job will be done about as well as a good TRAINEE would do. There is a HUGE difference, for example, between using a world class trainer like Tomeka Flowers and subscribing to Men's Health! But it depends on your goals, I suppose. If you want to just do a little better in some areas, go for it. If you want to compete against the best, get help.

It comes down a time/talent trade-off as well. If you want to spend the time honing your craft, then perhaps yes. If you need to get to a higher level, get help. The most effective people in life (IN ANY ARENA) focus on doing what they do well and then getting the best help/partnership they can get in other areas. Not any other way to see it really.

Painting is a great example. A professional painter (which I'm not) might cost you a few hundred bucks. But people say "Oh, I'll just do it myself!" and then lose thousands or tens of thousands of dollars on the house in lost sales revenue. Focused on pennies...

Not trying to be argumentative. Some will say "value always trumps price." Does value trump price really? I don't think so. The more critical or important the function, I'd say that value and price merge. Think about it. Going to Small Claims Court? Go alone. Going to Civil Court? Call your friend who practices a little law. Trying to stay off death row? An extreme example, for sure, but I wouldn't go with my buddy unless his last name was Kardashian, Jr. or Cochran, Jr. Therefore, does value trump price? There are isolated examples where you'll find someone who can do a great job for less than someone charging more. Over time, this will not remain the case. The person with great value will raise their pricing.

Back to my original premise. How much time do I have to invest in either teaching myself or can I accept inferior performance? Sometimes, you can't afford it. There's too much on the line. So I'll maintain my position. I can paint. You can paint. If you need someone to stage your house properly for sale in a hyper-competitive market, call a pro. Fast! If you need help getting your business or life unstuck and moved to a higher level, get HELP!!

Please leave me your comments so I know how to serve you better!! If this was helpful, forward it to a friend. To your success!









Mark Anthony McCray helps people live on PURPOSE, achieve higher PERFORMANCE and experience true PROSPERITY. Be sure to subscribe to this blog so you don't miss a thing and forward this to a friend if you found it helpful. All material © Copyright, Mark Anthony McCray unless otherwise noted!

He can be reached in the following ways:
Mark@LiveBIGDieEmpty.com
Phone: 281-846-5720
Twitter: @LiveBIGDieEmpty
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/LiveBIGDieEmpty
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/markanthonymccray/
Google+: https://plus.google.com/u/0/103149858138414160703/posts
YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/markanthonymccray
Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/markmccray/

For more information on Mark as a speaker or presenter check out http://livebigdieempty.blogspot.com/p/about-mark_29.html